Max Headroom

Max Headroom is an excellent Sci-Fi movie that has a great story, interesting characters and very witty dialogue. The dreary futuristic world it depicts is the hook that caught me and it's a movie all Sci-Fi fans should warmly embrace.

Amanda Pays, worth the price of admission all by herself, as Theora Jones and Matt Frewer as both Edison Carter and the title character Max both really make this film work. The supporting cast with the likes of William Morgan Sheppard and Hilary Tindall as "Reg" and "Dominique", the quirky owners of Bigtime Television, and Nickolas Grace who nails the part of "Grossman", head honcho at Network 23, also give great performances here. Hilton McRae along with his sidekick George Rossi, "Breugal" and "Mahler", add a humorous yet scary touch while doing the dirty work for computer nerd "Bryce" who is well played by Paul Spurrier. All-in-all this is a movie which shouldn't be missed.

Luckily I recorded Max Headroom on VHS during one of the times it was shown on Cinemax but I've watched it so many times since, it's getting fuzzier every time I see it. For the powers that be, PLEASE PUT THIS OUT ON DVD!!!

I've been long overdue to watch this. One hears the name 'Max Headroom', and sees star Matt Frewer all over the place, long before knowing anything else about the character, or the associated film or TV programs. I assumed a cheeky cyber sci-fi comedy; what I didn't anticipate was how stunningly dark the underlying ideas are, however sardonically they're approached. True, in the broad strokes it's a familiar dystopia of wealth, power, and extreme corporate malfeasance without one shred of humanity; one recognizes glimmers in every aspect of the production of similar fare from all throughout the 80s, and the reality of how much Network 23 has in common with real-life organizations in 2022. For that matter, one also has to consider the equivalence between the development in-universe of the talking head, and how there's a certain oblique correspondence to present-day discussions of artificial intelligence in online spaces. This picture is unquestionably an original creation all its own, though, and even in a runtime of just under one hour, the result is reliably outstanding. '20 minutes into the future' is fantastic!

It may be "just" a TV movie, and a veritable prologue to introduce a character, yet in every regard the feature benefits from care and craftsmanship recalling major studio films instead of its actual kin. In various ways I'm reminded of John Carpenter, David Cronenberg, Ridley Scott, James Cameron, or other big name filmmakers: the digital additions, practical effects, production design and art direction, hair and makeup, costume design, and even Phil Meheux's vibrant cinematography. The original score of Midge Ure and Chris Cross, lending somber atmosphere, would feel right at home in the works of any of those mentioned, and sounds in turn like it could have been penned just as well by Carpenter, Howard Shore, Jerry Goldsmith, or any such composer. Directors Annabel Jankel and Rocky Morton, and screenwriter Steve Roberts, all demonstrate a spark of ingenuity that lets every component part of their contributions and the picture at large resonate with unexpectedly rich, imaginative spirit. It's at once both delightfully tongue-in-cheek and astoundingly grim, and always wonderfully smart and sharp with every idea to present.

One is quite accustomed to any film of such an abbreviated length, and made for TV movies too, coming across as very direct, and possibly rushed and forced. It would be very easy as a viewer to feel shortchanged by such a production, nevermind that Channel 4 ordered this simply as an origin for the title character. Yet the writing and direction is marvelously keen, the crew turned in work just as fine as any picture one could point to as a comparison, and the entire cast - even those in small supporting roles - bring their parts to life with such incredible, gratifying personality. It seems an impossible task, but 'Max Headroom' comes off as a complete, balanced, well-rounded feature, more than can be claimed by some Silver Screen blockbusters with the all the resources of Hollywood behind them. Even if every constituent element weren't so stupendously well done in and of itself, the film as whole is a rather impressive accomplishment given what it pulled off within its chosen medium. I don't think it's at all unreasonable to suggest that when all is said and done, frankly this is a must-see. Whether one goes on to watch the programs that followed from this introduction, or just takes in '20 minutes into the future' of its own accord, it's a tremendous, intelligent, witty, and highly entertaining genre piece that not only continues to hold up but is arguably more relevant than ever. However one must go about watching it, this is worth far more than sixty mere minutes of one's time!

Gloomy future. Deserted streets. Media syndicates. Edison Carter is a hard-hitting reporter. One day he indirectly traces the existence of advertising, which has a dual impact on the subconscious of its consumers. On the one hand, they become addicted to watching it, on the other hand, like a drug, it is quite capable of killing some of those who happen to see it. The undesirable effect itself is not purposeful, but rather a specific by-product of a technical invention, but, as usual, ratings come first. The people standing behind the scenes are trying in vain to intimidate the reporter. Ultimately, a combination of circumstances will lead to the appearance of an alter ego - a computer version of himself with, at first glance, a strange call sign - Max Headroom. It is this digital form that will be destined to bring a little justice to the world. Where such a strange name came from can be understood in one of the scenes.

The action in this television film is presented primarily in the form of a vague, sometimes semi-documentary chronicle, with many screens, equipment, three-dimensional projections and faces in the frame. To some extent, this makes it similar to FMV quests, which became widespread with the onset of the nineties of the last century, both on the IBM PC and the 3DO console that appeared in 1993 in particular. The short running time, just under an hour, puts it on the same shelf as short films. Otherwise, it's difficult to say anything about the movie itself without obvious spoilers, so instead I'll focus on two other components.

First, in 1987-1988, an eponymous series was aired that lasted for two seasons and fourteen episodes, about an hour each. Secondly, the work, which is not particularly well known in our country, largely received cult status due to an incident on real television that occurred on November 22, 1987. An unidentified hacker managed to go on the evening live broadcast of the WGN-TV television channel, which was operating in Chicago, USA in those years. For about a minute and a half, the man hiding under the mask of Max Headroom was fooling around in a very unique way, at the same time essentially ridiculing both the TV channel itself and the media in general. The story that same evening was repeated on the consonant name WTTW. Today both the entry itself and the description in detail can be found in the same Wikipedia.

Like the TV show that followed it, the "Max Headroom" movie was a great grim look into a bleak, Blade-Runner-esque future ruled by corporations who keep the proletariat down by anesthetizing them with junk food and mind-numbing television pageantry. The parallels are frightening, or haven't you seen a Jerry Springer audience lately? The UK movie is, if anything, even grittier and more creepy than the eventual US pilot and TV series. It's out of print, but well worth searching out -- a dramatic, thought-provoking example of everything that's good about science fiction.

I loved this film back in the 80s, and its story of CGI characters to replace real people for TV is easily a possibility now. This is my favourite film ever, infact I only found out today that the its less than an hour long - theres so much going on Id swear it was 90 mins plus.

Anyone who is remotely into Sci Fi or computer graphics should see this, or anyone who just likes unusual films and fancies a break from the norm without being bored.

If this was a Manga cartoon instead of a British film, it would be massive!